In recent years, the skateboard has come to the fore as a means of recreation and outdoor exercise. The skateboard combines the thrill of speed with a test of skill to provide great pleasure to the skateboard rider.
Skateboards have also been responsible for a great number of injuries to the skateboard rider, and the sport has gained a deserved reputation for risk and danger. Generally speaking, skateboarding is accomplished on a downwardly sloping, paved surface. The skateboard rider can control the speed of the skateboard by performing generally S-shaped turns which intersect the fall line of the downward slope. As the skateboard gains speed, the turns become more and more difficult to accomplish, and the level of riding skill required to stay on the skateboard increases as quickly as the speed of the board.
Once the speed of the skateboard becomes so great that the rider cannot safely turn, the skateboard is out of control. The rider is then forced to dismount the skateboard, virtually instantaneously changing from a stationary position on the board to sprinting along the downhill slope. It is at this point that many skateboard riders fall and suffer injuries.
There are no safe braking devices known in the prior art for use with skateboards. If a braking device were provided, the skateboard rider could maintain the speed of the skateboard within a safe limit consistent with the skill of the rider.